You are browsing the archive for Greenland glacier retreat Archives - Page 2 of 3 - From a Glacier's Perspective.
April 19, 2017
Nuusuaq Peninsula West Greenland Glacier Disintegration
Comparison of alpine glaciers on Nuussuaq Peninsula in 1990 and 2016 Landsat images. Each arrow is at a specific location in both images exhibiting glacier separation/disintegration. The Nuussuaq Peninsula is just north of Disko Island in West Greenland and is home to many alpine glaciers and small ice caps. Here we examine the furthest west group of alpine glaciers on the peninsula. This group is 125 km west of the ice …
February 27, 2017
A River Runs 40 km Across the Greenland Ice Sheet
Supraglacial stream, on July 26, 2016 Landsat image, stretching 40 km across the ice sheet from the transient snowline, which marks the boundary between the percolation zone and the wet snow zone, west toward the ice sheet margin, note black arrows. The Greenland Ice Sheet has experienced a significant increase in surface melt. This is due both to warmer temperatures and enhanced melt due to a reduction in reflectivity-albedo. The expansion …
December 9, 2016
Norrearm Fjord Glacier Retreat, Greenland
Apostelens Glacier in Norrearm Fjord Landsat comparison from 1999 to 2016. Red arrows are the 1999 terminus location, yellow arrows the 2016 terminus location and purple arrows indicate an expanding bedrock ridge. “Apostelens” Glacier drains east from a peak of the same name into an arm of Norrearm Fjord, which in turn is part of Lindenow Fjord in southern Greenland. The glacier is a short distance north of Kangersuneq Qingordleq, where …
October 21, 2016
Tasermiut Fjord, Greenland loses its Glacier Connection
Landsat image sequence from 1999-2016. Red arrows mark the 1999 terminus, yellow arrows the 2016 terminus and the purple arrow a tributary that detaches from Semitsiaq (S). Tasermiut Sermeq (T) retreats from the fjord. Tasermuit Fjord in southern Greenland is noted for its beauty, and until recently the fjord terminated at a glacier front. Currently no glacier reaches to the fjord. The retreat over the last two decades is …
October 18, 2016
Kangersuneq Qingordleq, Greenland Retreat Causes Separation
Landsat comparison from 1999, 2001, 2013 and 2016 of Kangersuneq Qingordleq. Red arrow is 1999 terminus, yellow arrow is 2016 terminus. Purple dots mark the transient snowline and the purple arrow a detached tributary. Kangersuneq Qingordleq is one of the most southerly tidewater glaciers in Greenland. It is a 15 km long glacier flowing from the mountains between Prince Christian Sound and Lindenow Fjord. It is more akin to an …
September 1, 2016
Moulins: Clarifying Impacts on Glacier Velocity
In the last week I have read three separate articles referring to glacier moulins as lubricating the bed of a glacier resulting in overall velocity increase, for example EOS (Aug. 2016), this is not generally accurate. Having spent considerable time observing moulins and reviewing some excellent studies that indicate their impact, it is worth noting again a more complete picture of the role moulins play. This is a role that …
May 30, 2016
Tingmiarmit Glacier Retreat Separates Tributaries, South East Greenland
Tingmiarmit Glacier comparison in 1999 and 2015 Landsat images indicating the separation of tributaries at the terminus. The red arrows indicate the 1999 terminus and the yellow arrows the 2015 terminus location. Point A is peninsula where the tributaries joined, and Point B is a nunatak just upglacier from the 2015 terminus. Tingmiarmit Glacier (Timmiarmiit also) ends in the Tingmiarmit Kangertivat Fjord in southeast Greenland. The glacier is just south of …
January 17, 2016
What is Up in Disko-Uummannaq Bay Greenland January 9-16, 2016
@TenneyNaumer contacted Alun Hubbard, Jason Box and I with an astute observation last evening. “But what I am getting at is that in general the temperature anomalies over the region of Jakobshavn have been high in the last few days, and I spotted weird temperatures off the coast via Climate Reanalyzer (which is seriously low resolution). I just checked with the manati satellite (also seriously low resolution), and it seems …
December 30, 2015
Orpissuup Tasia Glacier slowdown, SW Greenland
Tedstone et al (2015) Figure 3 illustrates the widespread velocity decline along three transects. Pelto et al (1989) after a field campaign we mounted in 1985 and 1986 on Jakobshavns Glacier noted that the velocity was essentially the same in the summer of 1964, 1976, 1978, 1985 and 1986. Further we observed that the agreement between surface mass-balance and volume-flux calculations, suggested that “Jakobshavns Isbrae: is almost in a state of equilibrium”. The point …
December 16, 2015
Greenland Fjord Going Ice Free
Google Earth image from 2010 of Alangordlia Fjord At the AGU 2015 meeting a clear change from 15 years ago is the interdisciplinary nature of most research featured in most sessions. In the glacier sessions there is physical oceanography, biology, climatology etc.to add in. I will examine a SW Greenland Fjord, Alangordlia to illustrate this. In 1987 Landsat image there are four glaciers reaching tidewater in the fjord and two …
Dean of Academic Affairs at Nichols College and Professor of Environmental Science at Nichols College in Massachusetts since 1989. Glaciologist directing the North Cascade Glacier Climate Project since 1984. This project monitors the mass balance and behavior of more glaciers than any other in North America.